this post was submitted on 10 Jun 2025
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I hear the hum (www.bbc.co.uk)
submitted 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) by plantteacher@mander.xyz to c/publichealth@mander.xyz
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I was glad to hear from BBC crowd science (the linked show) that I’m not alone in hearing a hum. People around the world hear a low frequency (50 Hz) hum.

What I hear often when waking up in the morning is a high pitch buzz, comparable to the sound of your ears ringing the day after a concert. My theories:

  • it’s microwave radiation, perhaps from wi-fi
  • the eardrum itself is making noise due to a physiological condition, despite not being around loud noise (BBC mentions this as well)

I recall hearing about a woman who could hear wi-fi, to the surprise of scientists who would emit supersonic sounds and the woman would raise her hand to indicate when she hears a sound. IIRC, she moved to live in a small region where wi-fi is banned to prevent interference with an array of radio telescopes.

Here’s another link to past stories:

I am not quite sure I would call the hum low pitched. What I hear is very similar to the ringing ears experience after a concert. Isn’t that a high pitch?

I have to say I’m bothered that the research for this requires participants to use Google. I will not submit records to the project because of that.

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[–] Mothra@mander.xyz 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Hark I always thought it would be tinnitus. What if I can hear wi fi? How could I tell? Time to go bushwalking I guess

[–] plantteacher@mander.xyz 3 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

What if I can hear wi fi? How could I tell?

Wouldn’t it be bothering you if you could?

Well, I suppose not necessarily.. I hear a hum but it does not bother me because I don’t generally fixate on it. When I notice it, I then realise I’m being lazy and need to get out of bed and get my attention on something. Some people suffer, like Diane Schou, who moved to a town that didn’t trigger her electromagnetic hypersensitivity.

I suppose a test would be to enter a sound-proof room which then also has a faraday cage, and get tested. The tester would have controls for emitting sounds mostly outside the statistical hearing range, along with one to turn on a wifi AP, and some dummy switches that emit nothing. Then for you to raise your hand when you hear something. I read about someone taking a test like that, and she raised her hand whenever some electronmagnetic something was played (wi-fi iirc). It was something that was unusual and surprised the researchers. I cannot find the story on that now. Might have appeared in Wired mag.. not sure.